For the first time, the Program on International Student Assessment (PISA) has measured the creative thinking skills of 15-year-old students, assessing their ability to generate, evaluate, and improve ideas. As we navigate the complex environmental, social, and economic changes of the 21st century, it is crucial for students to be innovative, enterprising, and to use critical and creative thinking purposefully.
Many jobs, especially those in highly skilled fields, place a premium on creative thinking. According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2023 report, creative thinking is ranked as the second most important skill for workers, just behind analytical thinking. Similar findings by companies like LinkedIn and Deloitte underscore the essential role of creative thinking in the modern workforce. As digitalization and artificial intelligence advance, the premium on innovation, creativity, and critical thinking increases, while routine skills are increasingly susceptible to automation.
Creative thinking isn’t just about job market competitiveness. It also stimulates learning, activates higher-order cognitive skills, and supports emotional development, resilience, and well-being. Despite its importance, the development of creative skills cannot be taken for granted. The OECD’s 2023 survey of social and emotional skills showed a decline in creativity and self-awareness from age 10 to 15. This trend varies across countries, indicating that education and environment play a significant role.
While academic performance and creative thinking can be mutually supportive, they are not always prerequisites for each other. For example, education systems like Canada, Singapore and Korea excel in both areas, while others, like Czechia and Hong Kong, perform below average in creative thinking despite high academic scores.
Creative thinking skills can be taught. Teachers unlock student creativity by encouraging exploration, idea generation, and reflection. High-performing systems like Canada, integrate guidelines on developing and assessing student creativity, yet only about half of students believe their creativity can change. Nurturing these skills empowers students to innovate, problem-solve, and adapt in an ever-changing world.
Singapore, Korea, Canada*, Australia*, New Zealand*, Estonia and Finland (in descending order) are the highest-performing systems in creative thinking, with a mean score of 36 points or above – significantly above the OECD average (33 points). Students in Singapore score 41 points on average in creative thinking.
On average across OECD countries, around 1 in 2 students can think of original and diverse ideas in simple imagination tasks or everyday problem-solving situations (i.e. Proficiency Level 4). In Singapore, Korea and Canada*, over 70% of students performed at or above Level 4.
Embedding creativity and/or creative thinking throughout the curriculum. While creative thinking is increasingly included in global curricula, as either a transversal competency or within specific subject areas (OECD, 2023[1]), few jurisdictions provide strategic leadership and clear guidance in practice to accompany curriculum reforms. Indeed, in many cases, references to creative thinking are superficial at best with little guidance provided as to how or why these skills should be taught. Countries like Denmark, Korea, Singapore, Canada and Australia have all integrated creative thinking as cornerstones of their educational reforms in recent years, articulating its importance in education and accompanied by high-level strategic documents and practical resources for educators.
Source: PISA Creativity Report, June 2024
